Finding Serenity
by TheCheshireGirl22
Summary: Two years after the Duelist City tournament, Serenity Wheeler has grown as a person. She's ready to pursue her crush on Seto Kaiba. Will she be able to or will friends and family get in the way? (A silentshipping fanfic)
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One

"Kaiba!" Yugi said. "You've gotta help us!"

Seto frowned. "Now what?"

"Bakura's hurt!" he replied. "We have to land now! He needs to see a doctor right away, Kaiba."

"You're asking me to do the impossible," Seto said dismissively. He went into his room from the hallway and sat down. "We can't make an unscheduled stop."

We followed him in.

Yugi leaned over the table. "Don't you understand?" he exclaimed angrily. "Bakura needs help!"

"He's been unconscious since losing his duel!" Tristan put in.

"And if he gets any worse than he is right now, you'll be responsible," Joey said.

"That's a risk," said Seto, "I'm willing to take."

I put my hands together. I may have just met Bakura, but his life was in danger! "Please, Kaiba, this is really important!" I said. "Show some compassion!"

He looked at me.

"Pretty please?" I added. I blushed and put my hands down. Why was he staring at me so intensely?

"How can you say no to that face?" Tristan asked. "Serenity-"

"Serenity's right!" Duke interrupted

"He shouldn't have left the hospital in the first place," Seto replied.

Well, he had a point, but he didn't have to put it so cruelly.

"This is Bakura's own fault," Seto continued.

"Kaiba, please," I pleaded. "Isn't someone's health more important than your silly game?"

"Listen to her, will ya?" Tristan demanded.

"She's got a good point," Duke said. "What's wrong with you?"

I peeked out through my hair. He was still looking at me with those dark blue eyes.

"I've had enough of this attitude, Kaiba," said Joey. "Find a way to land this blimp or get ready to say 'hi' to the business end of my fist!"

Seto slowly got to his feet. "I told you, we're not landing, Wheeler."

"Then let's dance!" my brother said, his fist raised.

Seto Kaiba walked past him.

Joey moved to follow him but was held back by Yugi.

"Hey, come back!" Joey shouted.

"Relax, Joey," Yugi hissed

We all watched as Seto walked over to a large computer on the wall of his room.

"What gives?" asked Tristan.

Seto pushed a button. "Send a medical team to Bakura's room."

"Huh?" we all said.

"Good call, Seto," said Mokuba. All heads turned to the younger Kaiba brother. "Kaiba Corp's onboard medical staff has better training than most hospitals do. Bakura's in good hands here."

As we walked out of Kaiba's room, I said, "I hope Mokuba's right about the doctors on board."

"It was great how you stood up to Kaiba, Serenity," Tristan said once the door closed behind us. "I felt the exact same way you did back there."

Duke swooped in and grabbed my hands.

"And I have never been so moved by a speech in my life," he said. "Serenity, it's like your words came right out of the mouth of an angel!"

"So, do you think Bakura's going to be okay in the hands of Kaiba's quacks or what, Yugi?" Joey asked.

"I hope so," Yugi nodded.

Tristan walked over to them. "Hey, we still have to find Bakura's missing Millenium Ring."

"It shouldn't be that difficult if we split up, right?" said Yugi.

"Don't you guys worry about it," Tristan replied. "Just leave the Millenium Ring to me and Devlin."

"Huh?" Joey and Yugi said.

"You two should stay focused on the next round of the finals," he explained.

"It's okay, Tristan," Yugi objected "Really."

"No, I'm not going to let my friends get distracted before the biggest duel of their lives. Plus, it'll give me and Duke something to do."

Duke, meanwhile, hadn't let go of my hands and was staring into my eyes, making me more than a little uncomfortable.

"Perfect," he said. "Serenity and I will search upstairs."

"Uhh….," I said.

"Forget it," Tristan said. He put his arm around Duke and pulled him away from me. "You're coming with me, Devlin."

Relieved, I put my hand on my chest, over my heart.

"But I was, uh-" Duke started.

"Zip it!" Tristan said, putting a hand over Duke's mouth. "That Millennium Ring's not going to find itself, so you and I have to work together, dude. Come on, we've got work to do!" He dragged Duke to the elevator. I watched with Yugi and my brother as the elevator doors closed.

"It's nice to see them getting along, ya know?" Joey said.

"Yeah, sure," Yugi replied, not so sure. "I just hope they have luck finding Bakura's Millenium Ring."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

Since Joey and Yugi went off to their rooms to work on their strategies for their next duel (although I didn't really see why you'd need a strategy in a game like Duel Monsters), I decided to explore the ship. This place was _huge_ and I could probably spend half an hour just going from room to room.

It was during this exploring that I ran into the ever so mysterious Seto Kaiba. I was surprised and even a little delighted to see him.

"Mister Kaiba," I said. I decided that it was a good idea to be formal with him. Joey and his friends never were, but that didn't mean I couldn't be.

"Please, don't worry about the formalities.," he said.

Or maybe I didn't have to be formal with him.

"What are you doing here… erm… Kaiba?" I squeaked.

Seto looked around. "This is my ship. I own it. I can go wherever I want in it."

I blushed. "I mean- well- I just thought you would be working on your deck strategy."

He crossed his arms. I swear, in that moment, I almost melted. I didn't know what was wrong with me. Why was I acting like this?

"Only the weak have to strategize their decks right before a duel," he said coldly. His eyes widened. "Er… sorry. I know your friends are going to be in the final rounds and all. I didn't mean to offend you or anything."

I giggled. "Did you just apologize to me?"

"Was that wrong of me?"

"No. No, I was just surprised, is all. You're the last person I'd expect to apologize for their actions. At least, from what I've heard about you from my brother."

Seto stiffened. I could tell he wanted to say something unsavory about my brother, but he was biting his tongue. "Don't trust everything you hear about me from Joey. He and I aren't exactly on the best of terms."

I smiled. "So, I've heard. So is there any particular reason you're wandering around other than you own the place?"

His hair fell and covered his eyes. "Actually, I was hoping to run into you."

I raised my eyebrows. "Me?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"I hoped I could talk to you about something."

I put my hands together behind my back. "What did you want to talk about?"

"Why were you so persistent that I land the ship to help Bakura?" he asked.

I stared at him. Was he serious? "Because he's my friend."

"Just a friend?"

"Are you asking me if Bakura's my boyfriend?"

He blushed. He actually _blushed_. "Yeah, I am."

I smiled. "No, he's not. I don't have a boyfriend at all, actually."

Seto flipped his hair back, revealing those beautiful blue eyes of his. They seemed brighter than before. "A pretty girl like you?"

"Just because I'm pretty doesn't mean I should have a boyfriend," I teased. Despite this, however, I was flustered beyond belief. Seto Kaiba had actually called me _pretty_. "I'm only sixteen and I'm trying to be more focused on my studies than I am on boys."

Seto nodded. "Makes sense."

"When I'm out of high school though, I hope to move here to Domino City," I said. I hadn't told anyone this before, not even my brother. I didn't know why I was telling a complete stranger. "Maybe then I'll have time for a relationship, then."

"Hm," Seto said, "in that case…."

Before I could say anything, Seto swooped in and stole my first kiss.

It was sweet and magical and scary all at once.

And just like that, it was over. Seto pulled away. He pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket.

"This is my cell phone number," he told me as he handed the piece of paper to me. It was a business card with his name and a phone number on it. "My _personal_ phone number. It hasn't changed since I got it, so I doubt it's going to change in the next two years. So, call me when you're ready for a relationship."

He winked at me and walked away.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

Two years later and I was sitting across from Ryou Bakura at Burger World.

"So, you're going to call him today, correct?" he asked. "You absolutely have to. You've spent two years fawning over him and that kiss of yours. Not to mention how much you've grown up. You're actually assertive now. Prove you're assertive and go get your man!"

I laughed. "Bakura, he's not my man. He's not anyone's man."

"Well, he could be your man. You just need to go out there and take what's yours!"

"I don't know," I sighed. "It's been two years since the kiss. There's no way he'd still like me."

"What makes you say that?" Bakura asked. He looked honestly confused. "You are probably the most wonderful girl I have ever met! Give me one good reason why he wouldn't like you!"

Up until then, I thought there had been a million or more reasons swimming around in my head, but once I was asked to present one, I realised that they were just all my little insecurities- things that made no sense for why someone wouldn't like me. My nose, my eyes, my waist. I couldn't say any of them because I knew Bakura would be able to strike them down with ease.

"I don't know," I said instead. "But I'm hardly the same girl than I was back then. I've changed. A lot. And-"

"Shh!" Bakura said. He was staring behind me.

Confused, I peeked behind my shoulder. I quickly ducked my head down.

"You have got to be kidding me," I said, covering my face. "What's he doing here?"

Seto freaking Kaiba had just walked into Burger World. He was here with Mokuba, along with a couple of bodyguards.

Bakura chuckled.

"What are you laughing about?" I hissed. "The man of my dreams just walked into the same room as me and you're laughing?"

"Sorry," he said with a grin, "it's just, what are the odds that Kaiba comes into the very same restaurant you're in?"

"One in a million," I grumbled.

"Seto, look!" I heard Mokuba say. I flinched.

Footsteps coming towards me. I knew very well who it was and I didn't know if I was ready to see him after all this time. After all, two years is a long time. A lot can happen in a year, let alone two.

"Hey," Seto said. "I see you're back in Domino."

I looked up at him and smiled. "Yeah. It's good to see you Seto."

"Ooo, you're on a first name basis with him," Bakura teased.

I looked at him, my eyes wide. "Ryou!"

Seto chuckled. I looked back at him.

"So, how have you been?" I asked him.

"I've been okay," Seto replied. He glanced at Bakura, then back to me. "How have you been?"

Before I could say anything, Bakura said, "Kaiba, would you like me to leave you two alone while you catch up?"

"No, it's fine," Seto told him. He glanced at me. "I was just wondering if I was interrupting something."

Bakura stared at him blankly. "What would you be interrupting?"

"Well, this kind of looks like a… uh… a date," Seto asked.

My eyes widened as I remembered two ago Seto asking me if I had a thing for Bakura. I guess no one ever told him that-

"How does no one ever figure out that I'm not swinging for that team?" Bakura said to me, practically pouting. "I mean, I think I play my role as your gay best friend perfectly well and yet everyone always thinks that we're dating." Bakura out his chin in his palm and looked at Seto with a smirk.

Seto was staring at us with wide eyes. "You mean he's still just a friend?"

"And always will be," I giggled.

"Well in that case, would you like to catch up sometime?" he asked me. "I mean, as long as you aren't busy or anything."

"I'd love to," I replied.

He nodded, took one last look at me, then walked away.

"Well," Bakura said, taking a sip of his cherry cola, "I ship it."


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

That night, I searched and searched my room for the business card Seto had given me two years ago. I had lost a lot in the past two years, but the one thing I had always been careful not to lose was that card. That's I thought it was weird that it wasn't in its place in my dresser drawer.

"Looking for something?" my brother asked, startling me.

I turned around to see Joey standing in my doorway holding the very card I had been looking for. It felt like someone had grabbed ahold of my heart and was squeezing as hard as they could.

"What are you doing with that?" I managed to squeak out.

"What were you doing with Seto Kaiba?" he demanded.

"W-what?"

"Did you really think I wouldn't find out about that when people are constantly posting pictures of him wherever he goes." He held his phone, showing me a picture that someone must have taken while we were talking at Burger World. "There's pictures of you two all over the Internet now. What the hell were you doing with Kaiba and why do have his number?"

"I'm not going to answer any of questions!" I exclaimed. "You went through my belongings without my permission! Who does that?"

"A good brother who's worried about his sister, that's who!" Joey replied. "You can't like Kaiba, he's-"

"You can't tell me who I can like! That's not up to you, that's up to me!"

"It can be up to me when you're liking someone who's dangerous!"

"Seto isn't dangerous!"

"You ain't dating moneybags!"

"I don't even know if he wants to date me!" I exclaimed as I stormed over to him and grabbed the card out of Joey's hand. "And even if he did, it's none of your business. And most importantly, just because you don't like the people I'm seen with, that doesn't mean you can go through my personal belongings! I mean, who does that? There's such a thing as personal sapce. I don't pay half the rent just so you can keep an eye on me and try to control my life!"

"I'm not trying to control your life," Joey said softly. "I'm trying to protect you. You gotta believe me when I say Kaiba isn't a good person."

"You don't even know Seto that well, who are you to say what kind of person he is?" I asked.

Joey had no answer to this, which, in my opinion, only proved my point.

"If you can up with one good reason why Seto is a bad person, then I'll stay away from him," I told him. "But since you can't come with one right now, I don't see why I shouldn't call him. I like him and I'm pretty sure he likes me back. I want to call him. I know you want to to protect me, and I can understand that. It's sweet. You're my big brother and you always will be. I love you, Joey. But it's time for me to do something for myself. You have to understand that."

Joey let out a deep sigh. "I love ya, too, sis. And I guess yeah, I could understand that. It's just… I wish it was someone other than friggin Kaiba that you were interested in. What if you called Duke instead? Or Tristan?"

I didn't mean to, but I wrinkled my nose. "Joey, Duke made you dress up like a dog, which is kind of weird. And you know that Tristan creeps me out. No offense since he's your friend and all, but I'd really would rather not."

"If Kaiba breaks your heart, I'll break his legs."

"You can't do things like that."

Joey huffed. "I can and will. If you can date Kaiba, then I can put him in the hospital."

"Joey-"

"Nope, I'm serious. If he treats you wrongly in any way, he'll have me to answer to." And with that, Joey left my room.

With pursed lips, I closed my door. Why did my brother always have to be so difficult?

Then, I remembered what was in my hand: Seto's number.

A huge smile on my face, I jumped onto my bed, took my phone out and dialed the number on the card.

After three rings, he picked up.


End file.
